June 25 2012

1:00 AM

CROMWELL, Conn. — Marc Leishman waited 140 minutes before
his victory became official. He teed off two hours and ten minutes
before the final group was on the course.

His victory broke a couple bad trends this season. Leishman was
ranked 164th on the PGA TOUR in final round scoring average at
72.92. He was also 150th in Strokes Gained-Putting this year.
Leishman’s putting rounds of 28-29-30-24 were 11th best this
week.

Woulda, coulda: Charley Hoffman could have won this
tournament and perhaps should have won it. After playing the last
two holes in 3 over, he described his finish as
“pathetic.”

Hoffman hooked his drive at 17th in the water to make double
bogey, then drove into the rough at the 18th for another bogey. He
said he could stomach the bad drive on the 17th, a hole which does
not fit his eye, but was not as forgiving for his play at the
18th.

At the start of the round, Hoffman had promised himself a new
boat if he finished in the top 10. He finished second but I
don’t know if that new boat will provide pleasant
memories.

David Finn: The tournament’s most dramatic moment
played out before noon. As Hunter Mahan was walking the 18th
fairway, his caddie John Wood went into the gallery on a special
errand. He went to see a friend, David Finn.

David is a 19-year-old with a neurological condition that
prevents him from walking but does not hinder his love for golf.
Through the years he has become friends with Mahan, Phil Mickelson
and Bubba Watson – but Sunday was special.

Wood went into the gallery and brought Finn out into the fairway
and wheeled him up to the green all while still carrying
Mahan’s golf bag. The fans gave the trio a standing ovation,
then pulled out tissues to wipe their eyes.

Ace: Rory Sabbatini can be hard on himself while playing
golf but he was elated at the 16th hole. He aced the 161-yard par 3
with an 8-iron and in the process won a $27,000 Rolex golf watch.
Sabbatini said, “go in the hole” as the ball was
midflight and three seconds later, the ball complied.

Bubba bummer: Bubba Watson says he has never played the
299-yard par-4 15th hole well during all his years at the
Travelers. This year was no exception. Watson was 1 under on the
hole for the week but drove into the water when it mattered most in
his round.

He was 13 under for the tournament when he hit a huge slice off
the tee into the water hazard. Watson still scrambled to a one-putt
four, but the momentum was gone from the round and he scrambled his
way home with three more pars.

Unlucky 13: Golfers made their move on the back nine
starting at the short par-4 12th and the reachable par-5 13th. Greg
Chalmers found nothing nice about the two hole stretch this
weekend.

On Saturday he hit two balls out of bounds on the 12th while
making an 8. On Sunday he hit his drive at the 13th out of bounds
and made a 7. Chalmers finished T37 but lost seven shots on those
two holes this weekend.

If he would have parred the holes, Chalmers would have finished
T4. Then again, every golfer in the field has his own sad story to
tell.

Fred Albers is a course reporter for SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio
and inside the ropes this week at the Travelers Championship. For
more information on SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio,
click
here.